The world’s biggest capital cities are heating up – and Asia tops the charts

The worlds largest capital cities are seeing more extremely hot days than ever, according to a new study, which says the dangerous trend is being driven by scorching temperatures across Asia as the climate crisis worsens.. ..

From Buenos Aires, Argentina to the French capital Paris and Egypts Cairo, the study found with each passing decade, as human-caused greenhouse gas emissions rise, major capital cities are recording more and more extremely hot days posing threats to human health, economies and infrastructure.. . Climate change is not just a future threat its already happening and getting worse, IIED senior researcher Tucker Landesman said in a press release.. ..

In just one generation, theres been an alarming increase in the number of days of extreme heat affecting some of the worlds biggest capital cities - made worse by the urban heat island effect, which occurs when cities replace natural land with roads and buildings that retain more heat.. . Asian cities, which make up about half of the worlds most populous capitals, saw some of the biggest temperature increases a trend thats evident in recent heat waves across the continent, from Southeast Asia to China and India..

Asia is uniquely vulnerable to climate risks, due to its high population, poverty, and proportion of people living in low-lying areas, prone to flooding, sea level rise and other natural disasters.. . New Delhi topped the list of hottest cities, recording 4,222 days above 35 degrees Celsius in the past three decades more than any other city analyzed..

But this heat is not normal, something has to change.. . Indonesias capital Jakarta saw one of the biggest jumps in the number of days over 35 degrees Celsius in the past 30 years, from 28 days between 1994 to 2003 to 167 days from 2014 to 2023.. . Seoul, South Korea and Beijing, China have also experienced significant rises in extremely hot days..

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